The Role Of The Family

Title: The Role of the Family

Text: Genesis 2:18-24

Date: 10/14/2007

Location: Sulphur Spring Baptist Church

Introduction: Some people today are arguing that the Traditional (Nuclear) family of a Father, Mother, and children has outlived its usefulness. That it is no longer relevant in our postmodern 21st Century society.

What’s the role of the family supposed to be today?

What purpose is it supposed to fulfill?

And why does the family even exist?

The Short answer is that it was part of God’s overall plan for the human race. But I want us to take a few minutes this morning and examine this question a little closer.

I believe God established the family…

1. To provide us with the intimacy and companionship we need.

2. As a vehicle through which the earth would be populated.

3. As a vehicle through which He would educate His children.

4. To provide mutual love, support, and encouragement to men, women & children. (Col 3:18-19, Ephesians 5:21-25

5. To give order and structure to a chaotic world. Ephesians 6:1-4

Let’s begin with the first reason God established the family and that is…

1. To provide us with the intimacy and companionship we want and need.

Turn with me to Genesis 2:18

And the LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a companion who will help him."

So the LORD God formed from the soil every kind of animal and bird. He brought them to Adam to see what he would call them, and Adam chose a name for each one.

He gave names to all the livestock, birds, and wild animals. But still there was no companion suitable for him.

So the LORD God caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep. He took one of Adam’s ribs and closed up the place from which he had taken it.

Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib and brought her to Adam.

"At last!" Adam exclaimed. "She is part of my own flesh and bone! She will be called ’woman,’ because she was taken out of a man."

This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.”

Genesis 2:18-24 (NLT)

When God created Adam he was the only human being alive. God surrounded Adam with birds and animals of all kinds and gave him dominion over them. God had placed Adam in the most beautiful garden imaginable, had provided him with all of the fruits and vegetables that he could eat and had given him the responsibility of taking care of the animals. But something was still missing.

The 18th verse tells us that Adam was lonely. So God decided to create a companion and partner for him. That’s when God caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep and took one of his ribs and formed a woman from it. He then brought the woman to Adam and gave her to him.

Thus from the very beginning of creation God established the institution of marriage and the family. And notice it’s between one man and one woman, not two men or two women. Neither was this first family made up of one man and two or more women. It consisted of one man, Adam, and one woman, Eve.

God created us in His image, both male and female. Again this was all part of His plan. Men and women compliment and complete one another in many ways. God never intended for men to marry men, or women to marry women. Now I know that’s not the politically correct thing to say today, but it’s the truth.

The Apostle Paul realized this, and when he looked around him and saw how vile and wicked the people around him had become he said,

Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.

They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen.

Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones.

In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.”

God created us in His image. He created us both male and female. Like Him we desire companionship and intimacy. We have a strong desire to love and be loved. Therefore He established the family to provide us with the companionship and intimacy we want and need.

II. Secondly, God established the family as his chosen vehicle through which He would populate the earth.